Sulphur-free wines coming to London Wine Fair

BySonya Hook

| 07 March, 2016

French winery Domaines Paul Mas is returning to the London Wine Fair this May with a new range of sulphur-free wines.

The range, which will be available to the UK market for the first time, includes the 2015 vintage of the Cuvee Secrete red, a sulphite-free blend of Merlot/ Cabernet Franc, in addition to the 2015 Cuvee Secrete Chardonnay.

“This year we have been experimenting with low SO2 fermentation techniques and the results are convincing; the cuvees without sulphur taste far better than those to which sulphur has been used throughout the fermentation and they continue to develop in intensity,” said owner Jean-Claude Mas.

The Languedoc-based producer is now considered to be the leading vanguard for sulphur-free and low sulphite wines in the region; in 2015 the estate vinified around half of the total white wine volume and 25% of the red volume in this way.

“The 2015 harvest, which was simply of exceptional quality, enabled us to further experiment with low and sulphite-free wines, due to the outstanding quality of the fruit we picked,” he said. “We are now convinced that sulphur, albeit a useful tool for preserving wines, is not essential and we are tending to use it as little as possible – a strategy which is paying dividends for our wines.”

New arrivals to the producers sparkling wine range will also be on display at the event, including the Cuvee Secrete Blanc de Blancs and Pinot Noir traditional Method. It will also unveil its Cote Mas Sparkling Gewurtztraminer at the LWF, the first 100% Gewurtztraminer sparkling wine to have been produced in the Languedoc.